The Wakana team won this Monday, May 13, the first edition of the Hackathon organized by the Société d’Exploitation du TER (SETER). The winning team presented a prototype application integrating several features aimed at improving the experience of TER travelers.
In just 48 hours, the Wakana team, made up of young Senegalese developers, won over the jury with a very innovative application. During the pitch session, the 10 competing teams presented their projects under the watchful eye of the jury. At the end of this rigorous test, it was the Wakana application, combining intuitive design, useful alerts in the event of delay or maintenance, and particular attention to people with reduced mobility, which attracted people with its originality and its relevance.
“ We are very happy to have won this first edition of the SETER Hackathon, which was a big challenge for us. This award is an encouragement for our future projects “, said Isseu Diouf Roger from Wakana.
The team scrupulously respected SETER requirements during the competition. “We worked intensively on the design, sections and alerts intended to help travelers in the event of delays or train maintenance. But I think our major innovation lies in assisting people with reduced mobility,” Isseu continued.
THE Hackathon was launched in January 2024. After a rigorous selection, 97 candidates were selected. Then, a new selection phase made it possible to form 10 teams of developers who competed against each other.
The winners of this first edition received the sum of 4 million FCFA. In addition, a symbolic amount of 1 million FCFA will be awarded to them after the application is put into production, as a sign of appreciation for their dedication throughout the project. The second prize, worth 1.5 million FCFA, was awarded to the Simba Digital Transformation team, while the third prize, worth 1 million FCFA, was won by the TRIVIAL team.
Support for winners beyond the award
SETER decided to support the winning team to finalize the application. “We will collaborate with the winning team. The goal of this hackathon was not just to develop an application, because we had the capabilities to do that internally. As part of our CSR policy, we wanted to give young Senegalese a chance to show their talents. The Wakana team will be supported to finalize the mobile application in the next three months in order to provide a functional application for the service of TER travelers,” said Mandaw Diop, CIO of SETER.
Present at the closing ceremony, the Director General of SETER welcomed the commitment and enthusiasm of the young participants, but especially of the success of this first editionnot. “This hackathon was a success because the teams took up the challenge and produced an application that met customer expectations: an easy-to-use traveler information application. The choice was difficult because they were all up to the task, but one team stood out. This application reflects the image of an efficient TER,” underlined Charles Civreis.
He is pointing out that ” This first edition of the SETER Hackathon opens the way to new opportunities.” Because, he says, “always at the forefront of innovation, SETER plans to organize other similar events to continue to reveal and support the talents of young Senegalese people, thus contributing to the technological and creative development of the country.”
